Chapter 160 The Irresponsible Director of the Gunpowder Bureau
Joseph couldn't help but sigh when he thought of the unified measurement standards.
Speaking of which, the French Academy of Sciences, under the proposal of several academic giants, had long been preparing to form a "Standards Committee" to carry out the unification of measurement standards - speaking of which, the French scientific community is very forward-looking, and this is the earliest measurement standards initiative in Europe.
However, affected by the terrible efficiency of the current bureaucracy, the Academy of Sciences' application for funds has not been discussed for several years, and the Standards Committee has not been followed up.
Historically, it was not until after the Great Revolution that this matter was implemented with the support of the National Convention.
The efforts of the French Standards Committee also promoted the formulation of the world's metric units and paved the way for French industrialization.
However, the "Standards Committee" is still just a concept at the moment. Joseph knew that he had to intervene in this matter himself, otherwise he might not see a unified measurement unit in ten or eight years.
This damn bureaucratic system in France... Joseph shook his head secretly. When he has time, he must rectify the official system as soon as possible!
He was busy until dinner time, and Joseph finally made the two arsenal supervisors roughly understand the concept of "standardized production".
Standardized production is basically common sense in later generations. Even small workshops in the countryside will follow this standard when producing. However, at the end of the 18th century, this was an extremely advanced concept, and it was not easy for the two supervisors to accept it.
In addition, Joseph also talked about some business management skills, which increased their learning pressure.
Joseph was exhausted at this time. He even drank a large glass of water to relieve the discomfort of his throat caused by overloaded work. Thinking that he had to continue tomorrow, he felt a headache.
According to the current progress, it will take at least half a month to finish the knowledge of standardized production.
He spent so much effort, but only trained Garman and Martinnier. Isn’t this cost-effectiveness a bit too low?
Anyway, it’s going to be a "lecture", why not teach more people at a time?
He immediately thought that maybe he could directly open a course on "Industrial Enterprise Management", which would definitely be more efficient than teaching one by one.
So who should be the first batch of lecturers?
When Joseph thought of business management, Vergniaud immediately came to his mind. Vergniaud had previously completed the potato promotion and came to report to him. After that, he stayed in Paris to enjoy the fashion week and happened to have not returned to Bordeaux yet.
Vergniaud himself is an entrepreneur and also runs a plantation. He is also very good at preaching and has a high enthusiasm for work. He is very suitable for spreading the advanced concept of industrial management.
Even his Girondist friends are quite suitable for this.
In the early stage, let them go to the industrial development zone to teach factory executives, and then they can open a course at the University of Paris to train professional managers.
This is much more scientific than traditional family management.
Perhaps France's industrialization technology and production capacity will not be able to surpass Britain in a short time, but in terms of management, it can definitely achieve early surpassing!
And the improvement of production efficiency by optimizing management mode is often higher than new technology.
Thinking of this, Joseph summoned Emand and ordered: "Please send someone to find Mr. Vergniaud tomorrow, the one who helped me promote potatoes in Bordeaux."
"Okay, Your Highness, I am very impressed with Mr. Vergniaud."
"Oh, by the way, there is also his friend, I think his name is Jeansonnet, let him come too."
"Okay, Your Highness."
Joseph was about to finish teaching and go back to Versailles for dinner, when he suddenly caught a glimpse of the manager of the arsenal recording the quality inspection requirements just mentioned: all guns must be fired at least 5 times before leaving the factory.
He immediately thought of the production progress of the copper percussion cap that matches the percussion cap gun, so he looked at Martinier and asked: "Mr. Martinier, do you know the production situation of the copper percussion cap?"
The latter hurriedly said: "Your Highness, I went to the Royal Gunpowder Bureau to ask the day before yesterday, and they said it would take about three or four months to trial-produce the first batch of fulminate of mercury, and then deliver the copper percussion cap."
The Royal Gunpowder Bureau is the French department responsible for the research and development and production of gunpowder. Explosives like fulminate of mercury are naturally to be produced by them.
"Three or four months? So slow?" Joseph frowned when he heard this.
Martinier said: "They seem to say that they have tried to produce it several times, but all failed."
"Okay, I know." Joseph sighed helplessly. Fulminate of mercury is a technology that the British have mastered ten years ago. He has also introduced the synthesis method of fulminate of mercury to the Royal Gunpowder Bureau. How can they not master it?
The next day at noon.
In the reception room of the Crown Prince in the Palace of Versailles, the assistant director of the Royal Gunpowder Bureau of France and the production manager stood awkwardly in front of Joseph, explaining with bitter faces.
"Your Highness, you did tell us the synthesis method, but... the specific raw material ratio, process, etc., still need to be slowly explored."
The thin production manager nodded repeatedly: "Yes, you know, experiments with such strong explosives must be extremely careful. We also found that highly toxic gas will be produced during the trial production process, but fortunately no one was injured."
Joseph was also a little helpless. He only knew that fulminate of mercury was obtained by reacting mercury and nitric acid, and that it required crystallization and cooling, but he had never made it himself - in his previous life, it took at least three years to make explosives, with no upper limit.
But he didn't expect that after gathering the research and development strength of the entire gunpowder bureau, there was still no progress after a month.
If it was something else, the worst thing would be to buy technology directly from the British, but fulminate of mercury, which is related to the military, they don't sell it at all.
Joseph looked at the executives of the gunpowder bureau with a sullen face: "Even so, it shouldn't take three or four months to complete the trial production, right?"
The assistant director said cautiously: "Your Highness, if our director is here, it will probably take at most one month.
"You know, he was the one who presided over the test of this new type of explosive in the past. But he took a long vacation at the beginning of the year, so..."
Took a leave at the beginning of the year? Joseph frowned, it's almost April now! This director is really leisurely, does he not want to work anymore?
He said coldly: "Who is your director? Let him come to see me immediately!"
The production manager whispered: "Yes, it's Mr. Lavoisier..."
"Wait a moment, I'll go find him now."
"Wait!" Joseph heard the name and raised his hand to stop him, "You mean, Mr. Lavoisier? Is it Lavoisier who discovered oxygen? "
The two executives looked at each other and nodded: "Your Highness, it is indeed our director who discovered oxygen."
"He also wrote masterpieces such as "Introduction to Combustion."